The Darkest Horizon (On Hold)

Chapter 2

--    T H E  D A R KE S T  H O R I Z O N    --

 “EXPERIMENT NICHOLS YOU ARE EXPECTED TO AWAKE AT THE SOUND OF THE ALARM AND JOIN THE OTHERS CENTRE FRONT!” A deafening voice pulled Flynn right back to reality, and he jolted upright, clutching his chest as he tried to calm his heartbeat.

When he was sure he wasn’t about to die of heart attack, Flynn finally looked up at the huge black man standing above him. He held a clipboard in one hand and a whistle in the other, and wore a rather unflattering dark blue nurse outfit complete with matching pumps. But his expression was ferocious, and behind him, the clock showed seven minutes past six.

“Oh.” Flynn bit his lip as he realised he had overslept by seven minutes. This act was severely frowned upon and punished harshly, he knew as much from experience in Sector Five.

“I want you dressed and ready in Room Three with the others by six fifteen. You’ll find your things in Room Two.” The man growled before walking out and slamming the door behind him.

Nervously, Flynn shuffled out of bed and looked out of the room. Room Two was next door. It was a bathroom, with four cubicles labelled ‘Experiment One, Two, Three, and Four’. Assuming four meant him, and also because it was the only cubicle with any clothes in it, Flynn hurriedly got changed. The thin white cotton pyjamas he was wearing were replaced with loose fitting white trousers and a thin white top with a single button behind his neck. Everything smelled of antiseptics.

He found a toothbrush and some toothpaste in the cubicle and moved to one of the four sinks to quickly brush his teeth.

When he was done, Flynn made his way to Room Three. It was easy enough to find, considering it was the third door since the bedroom. He counted seven doors in total. Sector Seventeen looked a lot smaller than Sector Five.

Taking a deep breath before entering Room Three, Flynn nervously walked in and shut the door behind him.

“Nice of you to join us, experiment Nichols.” The black man said.

He was standing behind a counter in what appeared to be a kitchen. There were four chairs lined along a white table, and Flynn went to sit in the empty place.

“Experiment Nichols,” the man sneered; “you’ve broken a rule before the day has even begun.” He leaned forward on the countertop, his bulky muscles tensing beneath the coarse material of his nurse tunic. “And I’m sure you are aware of the punishment for breaking the schedule.” He looked Flynn in the eye, challenging him.

“Zat’s enough now Henrik.” A man with a long white lab coat and a heavy German accent walked in. “Experiment Nichols has had a rough night, I don’t sink we can blame him for his misconduct on zis occasion.”

Flynn let out a sigh of relief and silently thanked his saviour. The man looked like he was in his late 40’s; with a few strands of greying hair and a strong build. The lab coat didn’t hide the broad shoulders or the muscular arms, and Flynn felt a sense of strength and control emanating from him.

“I am Doctor Vinzenz.” The man turned his attention to Flynn. “And zis is Mr Henrik, your supervisor.” He pointed to the black nurse now standing quietly behind the counter. “You must be full of questions,” he said, “I will explain everysink after breakfast. Eat.” He nodded to the bowl of white pulp Mr Henrik must have put in front of Flynn while the Doctor was speaking. 

“Henrik,” Dr Vinzenz said. “Follow me.” The two left the room talking in hushed tones as they went.

Flynn looked at the pulp in front of him unappetisingly.

“Try and swallow it quickly. That way, you can’t taste the crap.” Someone sitting next to him suggested. Flynn looked up to see the blond boy from last night.

“Hey” he smiled, “I’m Nemo. Yeah, like the fish.” He laughed when he saw the expression on Flynn’s face. “This is Charlotte.” He nodded towards the girl next to him who looked up and smiled. Flynn immediately recognised the grey eyes from last night. They were so pale; almost lifeless. They stood out as a stark contrast to her long black hair. She must have been pretty once, but years of being subjected to the facility left her scarred and broken. Her eyes were empty and even through the smile, her expression was plain. She was wearing a black hoodie over the same attire as Flynn, but the sleeves were rolled up just slightly, and the skin around her hands and arms was a shade of different colours as though they had been stripped off and regrown. When she realised where he was looking, she uncomfortably covered up the bit of skin that had been showing.

 “And that’s Jake.” Flynn was pulled out of his thoughts and he looked up at Nemo, who jabbed his thumb in the direction of the dark haired boy who just grunted in response. Like the others, the boy was wearing the white tunic and trousers, but either his arms were too big, or the clothes were a little small, because the bulk of his muscles showed clearly beneath the material. Flynn silently warned himself about getting on the wrong side of this boy. He looked dangerous. And he couldn’t help but wonder what went on in this sector of the facility. Everyone seemed in such good shape.

He looked down at his own weak arms and sighed. At least they seemed friendly enough because he wouldn’t stand a chance if he had to defend himself at any point.

“Hi.” He finally whispered uncomfortably. “Erm, I’m Flynn.” He cleared his throat and gave a small wave with a forced smile. He wasn’t exactly shy, but years of undergoing the conditions of Sector Five made him this way; Weak, uncomfortable, and always waiting for the next punishment or bad event to happen.

“Well eat up buddy ‘coz on Mondays we have experimentation from seven ‘till eleven.” Nemo clapped his back.

Flynn gasped in alarm at the prospect of having a four hour experimentation session in one day.

“He doesn’t mean it like that.” The girl finally spoke. “It’s an hour per person. You get recreation whilst you wait your turn.”

With a sigh of relief, Flynn proceeded to eat his breakfast. He wondered again what Sector Seventeen was about, and why he had been removed from Sector Five in the first place.

--    T H E  D A R KE S T  H O R I Z O N    --

--------

 PLEASE VOTE VOTE VOTE if you liked this chapter =D

& comment letting me know what you thought, and how I can improve it 

Thank you for reading!