Left Behind -Gally-

Prologue

That was when a voice spoke inside her mind. Emma. The voice sounded foreign, but the name didn't. It was a name. Her name. "Emma," she whispered to herself. "I'm Emma." The box jolted to the side. She crawled backward, eyes widening.

Emma tried to steady her breathing, but it was hard. She had never felt such fear or at least had no memory of the feeling. There were no memories inside her mind at all. How was that possible?

It seemed the cage she was in was moving faster. Below was a vast amount of nothing. It was a bottomless hole. It terrified her. Everything terrified her. Emma wanted to scream, to cry out for help, but there was nobody around. Instead, she studied the objects that encircled her. There were three pigs in a cage. They didn't look scared. Boxes surrounded them. They were full of different vegetables and fruits.

Suddenly, the cage stopped moving. Emma fell, a groan leaving her lips from the impact. The blue lights turned red, making it harder to see. She pushed back onto her hands, coughing loudly.

There was a buzzer. The red light became green. Before Emma could understand what it meant, it went dark. All she could hear was her heavy, panicked breathing. Then a light shined through from above. The ceiling, which were actually doors, were thrown open. It blinded her.

Immediately, she felt warmer. The heat from the sun added to her confusion. Voices began to fill the air. There was laughing. Male voices traveled into the cage Emma was trapped in.

As heads leaned over the side, Emma crawled backward, wedging herself between two boxes. "Aw, they're hiding," a voice said. "How cute."

"Shut it," someone else said.

Two people grabbed the corners of the cage, opening it. A third person jumped down, the cage swinging from side to side. The action nauseated her, but Emma couldn't look away from the person. Her eyes were wide as they approached. "Day one, Greenie," they said. "Let's-" he stopped instantly. The man's eyes became equally as wide. His eyebrows raised even higher than they already were. "Shuck." He stepped back.

"You all right, Gally," a deep voice asked. "New Greenie give you a scare?"

The man, who Emma now knew as Gally, stared at her. He seemed confused. "Gally?"

"Something wrong?"

"New Greenie dead or something?"

A blond boy jumped down, squinting at her. Soon, his expression matched Gally's. "No way," he whispered. "It's a girl." Instantly, the voices above got louder. Emma moved further into the boxes, unsure of what was happening. She had no idea who these people were or why she couldn't remember anything. "Hi," the boy said. "I'm Newt." As he stepped closer, she moved back. Soon, there would be nowhere else for her to go. "Okay, easy, easy. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Why are you talking like that," Gally questioned. "She's not a Shucking animal. Get her out of the box, and let's go."

Newt glared at him. "Will you shut your mouth? She's scared."

"Everyone's scared when they come up."

"Hurry up," a voice called out.

"Yeah, what's taking so long?"

"Is it really a girl?"

"Why would there be a girl?"

Emma knew staying in the cage wasn't an option. It was too small. It made her feel powerless, but the idea of leaving scared her. There were so many people looking down at her. She didn't know them or how she even ended up here. "Come on," Newt said with a fair amount of patience. "You can't stay down here forever." With a hesitant nod, Emma stood up. "There you go." The boy, Gally, scoffed. Grabbing the rope, he pulled himself out. "Just crawl up." Emma nodded again, grabbing the rope. Quickly, she dragged herself out of the cage and onto solid ground.

"Woah, it really is a girl."

"How do you know it's not a Shank with really long hair?"

"I'm not blind, Fry."

Emma sat on the ground, staring at the people who had started to surround her. "Back it up," Newt yelled, pushing through the bodies. "I said back it up!" That seemed to be enough to make everyone take a step back. "Okay." Newt stuck his hand out for her to take. For some reason, she felt safe with him. Maybe it was his kind eyes or the gentleness of his actions. In seconds, she was yanked to her feet. She stumbled, bracing herself on his arm. "You good?"

"Yeah," she whispered. Everyone was staring at her, eyes wide with questions and concerns. Emma swallowed nervously. There were dozens of questions inside her mind, but she was too scared to say anything more.

Suddenly, a man pushed his way forward. He was short but confident in his movements. At the sight of her, his confidence wavered. "What do we do, Alby?"

"Uh," Alby rubbed his jaw. He was thinking carefully. "Take her to the Gathering Room. We'll figure something out."

"Yeah," Gally huffed. "Like why they sent a Shucking girl here." Alby glanced at him. It was meant to be a glare, but there was no ill will behind it. He agreed with the blond.

"Yeah, okay." Newt placed a hand on her shoulder. "Come with me, darling." Emma nodded for what felt like the hundredth time. She didn't trust the others around her, but she trusted Newt. It wasn't something she could describe. He seemed to be the only one genuinely concerned for her well-being. "This way." They made it through the crowd gathered around the hole. She noticed for the first time the area she was in. It was large, with cement walls surrounding them. The fear returned, but worse than before. She stopped, studying where she was. Part of her wanted to run, but where? There wasn't anywhere to go. "Hey." Newt noticed she had stopped. "It's okay. I know it's a lot. When we get inside, I can answer your questions." Emma glanced at him, now feeling unsure. "I promise, okay? I'm not gonna hurt you."

"Okay." One-word answers seemed to be all he would get out of her. Newt offered her a friendly smile. Taking a deep breath, she continued walking toward the building he was leading her toward.

She rubbed her arms, feeling insecure. Thinking back to the previous interaction, she began to wonder why there were only boys. They seemed rather surprised to see a girl. It was as if they were expecting someone else.

"I know this is confusing," Newt began. "We're confused. I'm sure you're confused." That was an understatement. She was terrified. "The box, which you just came up in, brings us supplies and a new Greenie once a month." She listened closely. "We all experienced what you are right now. No memories. No idea who we are or where we are. It's just-" he ran a hand through his hair. "You're the first girl we've had came up. It's a bit of a shock." He pushed open the door, gesturing for her to enter. She did. "But we're going to figure it out. Your name should come back to you in a few-"

"Emma," she whispered.

Newt didn't quite hear her. "What?"

"My name," she began again. "It's Emma."

"Emma," he repeated the name. "Hi, Emma." She smiled at him, shrinking into herself. "Don't worry, Emma." Newt placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We'll get this figured out, okay? But trust me, everything's going to be okay." And for some reason, she believed him.