When The World Stops

Foreigners of the Still World ~ Chapter One

The few lone stars shine through the window. Still, quiet and dull the stars are. They have been dying, and with all the artificial light surrounding us, their shine erased from the sky. Only a few of them remain. The only stars that shine are Altair, Deneb and Peacock. These are the brightest stars of the constellations long forgotten. I've memorised them all, in their glory. The constellations are never to move again. This world, never to move again. The moon stuck in its smile, as the Cheshire Cat himself wakes with me.

The dimmed lights outside of my window state that the official day has not started. The clock stationed inside of my room states the time 5:23 AM. Our work starts at 7:00 AM. It would be more worth it to return to sleep, but now, seeing that I am awake and curious, I kick my feet from the bed. The warmth immediately left my legs. I had forgotten the consequences of leaving the bed early, no matter how many times I did so.

Never minding that the world's imitation heat would not be created until the 'sun' rose.... I touch the silver-like steel floor and retract my foot almost as soon as it touched down. The floor felt like ice, as I should have expected. But I didn't, so there. I call out to the computer awaiting its first command in a string of many for today.

"Vitae."

"Yes, Sidera?"

"Initiate the morning sequence number 32." The ever so familiar hum of machines wiring to complete the request buzzes to life once more. I bring my feet back to the bed and wait for the sequence to be complete. The lights steadily turn on, creating a blue tint on the room. It looked like the houses of old, even though it was still the same quarters I had been in. The room cannot physically change to this room, it can only make the quarters feel like a room of old.

With the room downloaded and active, I take a moment. To breathe in the smell of linens hanging on a wire outside the window. I've been told this is a farmhouse, old fashioned and rustic. A fan runs above, with a light hanging down to light the room. There is a mirror on the wall in front of the bed, hanging on the darkly painted blue plaster wall behind it. Nicks and dents border the frame of the gentle mirror, able to shatter at any moment. The character I was playing was a young child, no older than 13. His features differ from that of the characters I play most. He was strong, hearty and just a little... dusty? Or caked in dirt... The boy must have been playing outside before coming in to wash up for supper or lunch.

The curtains were shut, but the window open. The suns light passes through the layers of the faint white cotton curtains. I creak on the floor which seems to be as close to wood as I could have gotten. The smell of the linens grows ever stronger as I reach for the cord to draw the curtains. Drawing back, I feel a sensation of the 'sun' radiating heat onto me. That's when the program ends. It knows I'm not in the place I wanted to be. The program always ends before I can see the sun, look outside or even just feel a breeze.

The program starts to try and run another morning sequence. I just stare at the lights. The stars as they glow, noting that Aser is visible. I miss that constellation. I miss them all to be quite frank. I miss the Pavo and Delphinus constellations the most. The constellations of the peacock and dolphin. Many of the stars of Pava died out or are hidden by the light pollution. The sky, covered in a blanket of light. The only thing that could never burn out is the moon, waiting in the sky, hoping to fly once more.

The window fades to black, then a faint red light appears. I shut my eyes immediately and turn to face the entrance. Until the red light is replaced with the calming noise of the ocean and light, I keep my eyes clamped shut. False alarm. The next sequence almost fully boots up before I stop the sequence.

"Vitae."

"Yes, Sidera?"

"What just happened?" There is no response from the computer. The only noise came from a pounding at the door.