Chapter 5 – When Reality Comes Knocking

Aurora struggled to free herself from the table in the cold examination room. Once her body had healed, a Haw Tech official had fetched her from the recovery room, only to move her here. They’d asked her to lie down on her stomach, and she’d obliged, thinking that they had yet another test for her.

She had known the mutual respect had been too good to be true. As soon as her chest hit the padded table, four Haw Tech scientists had bound her hands and legs. She’d tried to reason with them that there was no need for this—she’d do as they asked. But they ignored all her pleas and questions.

She wasn’t sure why the restraints bothered her so much. Compared to everything else she’d been through in her life, this was almost a luxury, and Haw Tech still hadn’t given her any reason to distrust them so far—well, with the sole exception of tying her up like a rabid dog. More than anything, it was the feeling of being unable to move that she found so disturbing.

Though she couldn’t see them but for the corner of her eyes, she could hear the tap of feet against marble as scientists in white lab coats circled around her; she heard them mumble about various medical jargon: blood-scans, surgery, and she tensed when she heard someone ordered to bring out a laser. Aurora didn’t know what they intended, but something definitely feel right.

“I want to talk to Daniel Hawkins or Charlesta Callan,” she said. She waited for one of them to answer, but there was no reply.

On second thought, it’s not the being tied up that bothers me the most—it’s their silence. Why won’t they at least talk to me?

She couldn’t even see their faces. Her head was pressed into the table, and if she strained her neck, she still couldn’t make out more than their torsos.

I need a shot, she thought. Badly.

It was difficult to keep her eyes open; she needed something to pep her up. Her eyelids were heavy, her body exhausted, and she wanted to sleep.

Maybe I can go see Ron.

Would now be a good time to get away? To return to her world of shadow and warmth? She glanced around the room. All the white-coated people had their back turned towards her so that none of them would notice if she let herself slip away. She doubted they would mind even if they did notice. It was, after all, her body they were interested in and not her mind.

Five. Four. Three. Two. One….

It didn’t take long for her to slip into the right state of mind: relaxed, numbed, and distant. Without the fear of pain to hinder her escape, she was able to leave the examination room behind her. There was a feeling of floating, of weightless, and then with a quick, barely perceptible flicker, she found herself outside Ron’s apartment—his apartment.

Her heart sank when she noticed he was nowhere to be found. She searched the area around her; the sun was just rising, and the street in front of his apartment was filled with the usual morning traffic. There were many faces in the crowded sidewalks, but if he was here, she would find him—or he would find her.

“Hello?” she called. “Are you there?”

Men, women, and children shuffled past her, and all ignored her call as if she were but a ghost, unseen and unheard. None replied to her question: the pedestrians continued on their way, disregarding her existence. She waited around a moment before calling after him again. For a second time, no one answered. Aurora wondered what she was supposed to do.

Her eyes landed on the door to Ron’s apartment and over the small flight of stairs leading inside. Could she simply walk inside uninvited? He had called it his home, and he’d claimed to have been in a relationship with her.

And I haven’t even seen his face yet.

Aurora ignored the pessimistic little voice in her head and carefully climbed the stairs. She paused at the top and stopped to draw a deep breath. Was this the right thing to do? She inched closer to his door. What if she wasn’t wanted? What if he turned her away?

I didn’t come here for nothing, she reminded herself.

Before she could talk herself out of it, her hand landed on the doorknob, and she twisted. The door wasn’t locked, which struck her as odd. She shrugged the worry off. Maybe Ron was home and merely waiting for her.

She stepped inside and was immediately struck by the darkness. There was no light inside, and Aurora fumbled to find a switch on the wall. When her fingers found what they sought, she flicked the switch and a soft glow illuminated the apartment. Her eyes widened. This place was like heaven: wooden flooring, leather couches, and a kitchen large enough to get lost in. Was this how humans lived on a day-to-day basis? Compared to the tiny living area Zachary had stuck her, this apartment may as well have been a palace.

Normal humans live like this?

Aurora had been with wealthy families in the past, and she’d seen the sorts of materialistic goods that money could buy, and while this apartment seemed much more simplistic, it was still a treasure trove of comfort and security when contrasted to the places she’d been forced to dwell.

“Ron?” she called. “Are you home?”

She stepped further inside before remembering to shut the door behind her. Cool air licked her skin—an air conditioner? He had one of those, too? Aurora walked into the living room, hoping to find some sight of Ron.

She searched around the walls. She knew some humans liked to place pictures or artistic portraits of themselves. So far, she’d never been able to see Ron’s face, and she hoped to find a clue as to what he looked like. Unfortunately, there was only a single picture, which rested lopsided above a wide fireplace. It depicted two individuals in a passionate embrace, but their faces were turned away from the camera. One, she could tell, was a woman, and the other a man. Was it Ron? Did he have a girlfriend?

The image was faded, and a thick layer of dust had taken up residence over the glass frame. Maybe it was his parents.

She realized she wouldn’t get anything more out of the picture, so she continued on. In the far, an open door led into a bedroom. The idea of spying on something so intimate caused her cheeks to heat up, but her curiosity wasn’t sated—she wanted to know more about Ron. She held her breath as she crossed the living room and then stepped inside.

A smile found its way onto her lips. He was quite tidy: his bed was made, there was no clothing on the floor, and she recognized the scent of linen spray in the air along with a faint smell of a perfume, which she liked. It smelled of him.

Her smile widened at the thought of him. She spotted a desk in the back corner of a room. There was a laptop on top with the screen on; she could see his emails! Aurora refrained from looking through them, though. She hadn’t even seen Ron’s face yet, so it was far too soon to be playing the role of paranoid girlfriend she read about in human romance novels.

The stack of papers to her right caught her attention. Was Ron a writer? She examined them. Whatever this was, it clearly wasn’t a work of fiction: medical terms, numbers, and symbols made up the majority of the contents. Skimming the first page, she found nothing of interest. Although, to be fair, she may have found it more interesting if she could understand any of it. Whatever it was that Ron was working on, Aurora had no way of understanding. She decided to keep reading anyway. She skimmed a few more pages before her eyes caught sight of a word. She stopped, backed away, and took a sharp inhalation of breath as fear crept into her spine. Her eyebrows furrowed and she took out the page.

Immortalia.

As she read about different theories surrounding Immortalias, she was surprised to see that Ron knew more than he’d let on. Maybe he’d known what she was all along.

“It’s important to remember that Immortalias are similar to humans in a lot of ways,” she read aloud.

She glanced at the other papers briefly and was surprised to find an entire thesis on Immortalias. Leaning back, she continued to read, this time silently.

The studies conducted on the origin and behavior of Immortalias shows a genuine code of honor within their very being. A contract is for life, and the Immortalias only have a few ways to free themselves. I accompanied Dr. Hawking on his expedition to the land of the sacred. We found that free Immortalias shied away from us, and despite our exhaustive attempts, they refused to communicate.

The hair on Aurora’s neck rose as she read over the text. Free Immortalias were simply unheard of. She should know—she’d been watching the submission of her kind for centuries. Aurora sniffed. A vile smell hit her nostrils. Something was burning. But she ignored it, covering her nose and continuing to read.

A child came up to me on my last day there. She told me if I knew when the Catalyst would arrive. I told her that I wasn’t aware what she was referring to, and she told me a tale of an Immortalia.

“She is the savior of our kin,” the girl said. “With each passing day she gets closer to her full potential, and her fights will be vicious. She will cause a change in the world.”

I asked the girl if she knew who this woman was.

“She is known only as the Catalyst.”

I was unable to ask any more questions, as the child’s mother called. My theories of an underground revolution are based on this encounter, and I present to you the following results from our analysis from Haw Tech.

Aurora shivered. The thought of a revolution could worsen the conditions for many Immortalias. She flicked through the papers—she didn’t understand all the numbers on the pages. The burning smell in the room grew stronger. Briefly, she glanced around the room. Everything seemed normal, but the scent of smoke was unmistakably strong. She stacked the papers neatly and put them back. She stood up and skimmed the room. Something wasn’t right.

Thoughts of the revolution along with the new information about the sacred land swirled inside her head. Aurora didn’t socialize with other Immortalias: she never had the chance. They were few and far between, only the prominent families owned one. The people who weren’t wealthy now had inherited an Immortalia from their relatives.

Just like Zachary, she thought.

She jerked up; pain shot up her back causing her to look around. Her body gave a spasm and then she remembered.

The smell...

The realization caused her to sink to her knees. Out of all of the artistic experiments that Zachary had put her through, only one had been able to penetrate this world. Only one had managed to pull her back, screaming for mercy.

The stench of burning flesh intensified, and Aurora gagged. The phosphoric smell of burnt hair, accompanied by the singe of her skin, caused her to feel sick. But she couldn’t panic; if she lost her focus, she’d be pulled back to reality. Her only chance of safety was in here.

Aurora tried to breathe through her mouth, her tongue plastered to the top of her mouth.

Breathe, Aurora.

Confusion spread inside her mind. Why was this happening now? She was free from Zachary, and Haw Tech didn’t brand people. Why would they burn her? What interest could they have in marking her skin?

“The laser…” she muttered. Her mind connected the dots for her. They were pulling her back on purpose.

Her heartbeat sped up, and she gritted her teeth as the pain amplified. Every fiber of her being fought to stay here, but she could sense the world around her crumbling. In a few minutes, she’d wake up to an excruciating pain like no other.

“No…” she whimpered. Soon after, she could hear a scream. She knew it was from her, but she didn’t feel her mouth open—all she could feel was the pain.

She closed her eyes and prayed.

“She’s back. Clearance for double dose?” a voice asked.

Aurora wanted to answer no. No more. But she knew they wouldn’t listen. She struggled against her bonds as the laser moved over her back, making her yell out.

It hurts so much.

“Greg, clear the area.”

She struggled to breathe through the horrid smell of scorched flesh. The remnants of her shirt were torn apart and the laser was fixed on a single point. She gritted her teeth to stop yet another scream. Her whole body tensed up. White spots appeared before her eyes, and she clenched them shut.

Aurora wasn’t religious. She’d never believed in the tales of an all-loving God in this wretched world, but as she lay on the table, unable to move, she prayed with all her might. This was worse than any of Zachary’s experiments.

“What the…?” someone said. She couldn’t recognize the voice.

“Greg, do you see this?” someone else asked.

Aurora fought to open her eyes. When she could finally see again, the lights in the examination room were flickering on and off, and an alarm was blaring.

“Step away!” someone yelled.

There was a loud noise, followed by a low buzz. Every light darkened, and the laser searing her skin had thankfully shut off. Aurora breathed in relief. The skin on her back felt as if it were on fire, and she was afraid to move. She didn’t know what had happened.

A scientist slowly rose from the floor, his glasses half hanging off his face while he crawled on his knees. His eyes locked on Aurora’s back, and his jaw dropped.

“What is it?” she whispered.

“Greg, please get Hawkins. This is Code R-99,” someone said.

The scientist scrambled to his legs and hurried out of the room.

“Aurora, can you speak?” the voice asked again. She heard footsteps, and another person in a white lab coat stepped into her line of view.

“Yes…”

“We’re experiencing some technical difficulties. Please, tell me … what exactly did you just do?” His eyes kept glancing at her back.

“Do? I didn’t do anything!” she shouted, realizing too late that she was yelling at the people who technically owned her. There was a grueling knot of fear in her stomach, and she didn’t dare ask what was on her back.

“Don’t close your eyes just yet, keep looking at me.”

Aurora opened her eyes—she hadn’t noticed that she was dosing off.

“I’m so tired,” she muttered.

“That’s understandable, but try and fight it off until Hawkins gets here.” The scientist took a chair and placed it in front of her. Sitting down, he continued, “Talk to me. Don’t pass out on me.”

“I don’t understand all this.” Aurora sighed.

“Based on Dr. Callan’s results, we were trying to gather the Nubots from your blood and replace them.” The scientist scratched his head. “I’m not sure what went wrong, but normally, this wouldn’t have happened.” Once again, his eyes fixed on her back.

“Why do you keep staring at my back?”

“Don’t you feel anything?” he asked, sounding surprised.

Aurora focused on her back; it was sore now, but she wasn’t in excruciating pain any longer. “Apart from exhaustion and a sore back, I don’t feel anything.”

Actually, her back was close to numb. Her skin was the worst, but it should be healing already. She was about to ask why this would come as such a surprise, but before she could voice her question, the door to the examination room opened and the scientist with the glasses rushed in with Daniel Hawkins in tow.

“What happened?” Hawkins asked.

“We were trying to extract the Nubots by pulling them out one by one,” the scientist on the chair said. He gestured to her back. “We experienced some difficulties during the second phase, and the whole removal process went awry.”

Aurora saw Hawkins face change as his eyes went over her back. “I see,” he said. After staring for a moment, he addressed Aurora. “Are you in pain?”

“Not particularly. I’ve had worse,” she answered truthfully. “What is it?”

Hawkins bared his teeth. “We can’t afford the same mistake. Johnson, lead Aurora to safety. She is to be under surveillance twenty-four seven.”

Aurora finally concluded that whatever they’d done to her back wasn’t something they’d want to share. She relaxed her still tensed-up muscles and sighed.

“Aurora, just relax,” one of the scientists said. “You’re going to feel a little pinch, and then you’ll be just fine.”

“A pinch? N-no, you can’t. I’m fine just as I am. There’s no need to—”

She was unable to speak another word as the world faded to black and her eyes fell closed.

A/N: Please vote.