Chapter 4: Oblivion

I could hear fainted chirping of birds. I looked at myself. I raised both my hands and brought my palm towards me. My skin appeared to be glazing yellow. It didn't seem pale. I looked down at my feet. I was standing on the damp ground. I felt a tickly feeling as the moist sand descended away from toes.

That's when I looked around. I was alone at the beach.

The salted air did make me uncomfortable. My hair gently danced along with the wind. I was wearing what seems to be a floral dress. I never wore my hair loose.

I looked up at the sky. The crepuscular rays shimmered it's way to the ocean. It made the waves appear even more blue.

Suddenly a wave hit my legs. It felt warm. I couldn't help but smile whole heartedly.

I tried walking but the ocean waves wouldn't let me.

I realized that it was the sea gulls who were chirping before. I felt like I was in heaven.

I decided to look at how the waves would just softly touch me and move away as if I would hold them forever.

That's when I saw a white mass of solid near my legs.

I bent down and took that thing in my hands. I looked at it closely. It had these beautiful patterns around it that shone like the seven colours all at once. It was shaped like a teardrop I could say.

" That's a seashell you're holding.", said a familiar voice. I turned around.

I couldn't believe my eyes. There he was. My brother.

"Jon.", I said. I ran towards him. When I was almost near him. I tripped and fell. I screamed his name.

"Jooooon!!!!!", I screamed and woke up. I sat as I held my hand on my chest as I felt I was suffocating.

When I looked around I knew that I was dreaming. Like I was in Earth and everything was fine.

Like every intense hopes, it was just an illusion. I felt that someone was near me. I looked up.

It was Neon. She was actually there.

"Hey. Hey. Shhh!! Shh!!! It's okay.", she comforted me as she tried to lay me down. I followed her.

"Where am I?", I said as I glanced around the room. I saw small bottles of medicines stocked up on the shelves. The air smelled weird.

I felt pain to the left side of my forehead. I traced my fingers over my forehead. When I touched my skin there, I felt soreness there.

"You hit your head when you fell. It's a small bruise. But it is purple.", Neon said answering my actions.

"I am at the caretakers. Am I?", I asked Neon. She nodded. Her face appeared to be in discomfort. She held my right hand and gave me a strong grip. I knew what she meant.

She's trying to be stronger for me.

An employee in brown uniform entered the room with a hologram screen. When he approached me, he looked at me closely.

"My name's Charlie. I am your doctor..", he said as he examined my pupils and sore bruise. He exhaled deeply.

"I know that it hasn't been a good day for everyone here. I assume you got hit by the worst news as well. Apparently you just suffered Vertigo, which raised your blood pressure and made you unconscious. That's why you fell and hit your head.", he said in a comforting manner.

I nodded.

"Am I allowed to leave?", I asked him. When he heard this, he looked at Neon and then back towards me.

"If you feel good, then you may leave. But I request you to stay here for the day.", he insisted examining my health conditions on the hologram.

"I feel perfectly fine.", I told him. I tried to sit up.

I felt a little heavy. My head did hit pretty badly. When I sat up, I felt tired. I tried to stand up.

I saw blurry streaks of light. I kind of knew that I was debilitated. But I would rather spend my rest of the day at my bed than here.

When I looked up at the doctor and Neon , they were very concerned. They knew that I wasn't going to hear a word they say. Despite that phase of argument , Neon helped me to try to walk.

"I would like to go back to my room.", I told her.

Right then I saw Patrick enter the room along with Sam. He walked so swiftly that when he saw me, lapsed.

"There she is. I told you she's not ok.", Sam said as he walked towards the doctor. He then began talking with him.

Judging by his flabbergasted expression, I rolled my eyes at him. Doesn't he know about my brother?

"I heard about Jonathan. Sorry to hear about that. But as important as that is, you have to move to the Hive right away.", he said as he looked down at his shoes during the last sentence.

I looked at Neon then. She gestured at the doctor kind of asking him if Patrick was out of his mind.

"Hey. I think I need to go.", I told Neon. She was upset about these merciless acts of the ADM's always. She complains a lot.

"You sure?", asked Neon as she tried to find a little piece of neglect for that order from Patrick.

"I am sure. I have to feel good always, right? Moreover I have been dealing with the ADM's whole my life. One thing you can know is that, you can't negotiate with them.", I said as I tried to walk towards Patrick.

As I walked right past Patrick swiftly, I didn't turn back . I don't want to feel their concern now for just this moment. Maybe, I am the inflexible monster who denies the reality. I didn't feel like a puny person now.

I could feel that Patrick was following me. At one instant, he gathered pace with me.

"Scar!! Wait up. You were just awake few minutes ago.", said Patrick as he walked along with me.

I stopped. I saw two people in brown uniforms looking at me from a distance. Some others rolled their eyes at each other. I looked at Patrick.

Suddenly all the feelings that have been bottled up till far gushed out at once.

"Wait? Patrick that's all we've been doing for centuries. People go out there taking their life on their hands like it's something to trade. And what do they get back? Death and fear. I haven't seen or knew anything new they've been receiving. We order every generation to do the same. It isn't long that they find this home too.", I shrieked. I realized that I was sweating.

"I know your situation. You're having second thoughts on becoming an Aider.", he said as he tried to conclude my facts of abrupt anxiety as he thought to be.

"Seriously, that's all you heard? Oh my god , I can't believe it.", I started walking again but with more anger now.

I walked past some ADM officers now. The sight of them is really raging my adrenaline.

"You need to calm down. You need to learn to put aside your feelings and breakdowns for some other time. As an Aider, you are requested to follow all the protocols we give you. You can't question their purpose.", Patrick officiated his responsibility.

I felt my heart beat faster like drums. Next thing I know, I gathered all my strength and punched right at his nose. He stumbled back, blood rushing from his nose .

Guessing from the wound, I knew that he didn't expect this. Lest, he would've blocked it. He spit the blood that made their way to his mouth.

Everyone across the hallway stopped and gazed at me. A woman in brown uniform rushed towards Patrick. She gave him a piece of cloth she had with her to stop the bleeding.

He accepted it smiling.

"Thank you.", he said to her. Then he looked at me. He walked towards me slowly and held my palm out.

While his left hand was holding the nose from more bleeding, his right hand searched for something on his right pocket on his uniform. After a few seconds, he pulled out a silver square piece.

"You press it like this and place it on the ID on the shutter or whatever you have for your new room. It will scan you.", he demonstrated. He then placed that square piece on my palm.

He then leaned right close to my left ear.

"If you want to fight, come to the Hive.", he then looked at me with fanatical admiration and walked past me.

I put the square piece on my left palm and turned back my right hand to look at my knuckles. It was red.

The people on the hallway knew that the drama they wanted to see was over. That one thing about them never changed even after the apocalypse. People love to see your insecurities.

"HEYYY!!!!", I heard someone shout. I turned myself. I saw Patrick standing there with the napkin which is all bloody now.

"I think you broke my nose pretty much. That's gonna leave a nasty scar, Scar.", he tried to joke as he shouted these words.

I wasn't impressed. I folded my hands and looked at him again. He then turned and walked away.

That was indeed a good punch. I feel so proud about myself now. He was right, if I wanted to fight, I got to channel my temper to something good for this home.

I assured myself to keep this as a reminder as I started walking forward in the direction of the special division of Stellar X. The Hive.