016 The Awakening [ On Hold ]

Chapter 3 | Body Bags are Itchy

Staring at the folded bag I take a step back, and yelp when I bump into another table.

"Why am I here?" I repeat again, "I'm sick of not knowing anything. Where am I, and why am I so involved in this mess!" I breath rapidly, my heart rate probably rising too high because of my panicked mind.

Robert examines the empty room before speaking, "Look Sub, this isn't your fault so stop thinking about where you are and think about getting out. That's your main focus right now, getting out."

I look down at one of the bags. I could tell a smaller body was inside because of all the empty space. '015.' I wondered how young the person inside was.

I stared at it, wondering if they ever felt as scared as I did. I turn away, refusing to think about the life of the innocent people inside these bags. I continue to walk down the narrow space between the tables.

"Sub," I mumble to myself in disgust, "How original." I sarcastically add. Robert apparently heard me because he growls and shoves my arm.

"Any better ideas?" His voice was deep. Imagine putting a bunch of rocks in a blender and then turning it on. That's what his voice paralleled. He looks at me, his eyes burning into mine.

"No problem," I say faking I smile, "Sub is great.
It's...Sub-perb."
Fortunately he didn't here the last part, or else I fear he might have shot me.

I can now see a silhouette in the distance.

"Robert, is that you?" A familiar sweet voice asks. As we continue down the line of lifeless bodies the shadows from the lights shift allowing me to see the face of the woman we were approaching.

It was...her. I couldn't believe it. The woman from before that was trembling as I held a knife to her throat was standing twenty feet away. Her messy hair glinted in the light and her soft skin glowed.

She sees me, and in her eyes I can see an instant recognition.
She flinches and I can see the muscles in her neck tense. She looks down at my bloodied hands and I can't imagine where her mind must have wandered.

We both stare into each other's eyes, neither of us saying a word.
Neither of us knew what to say. Robert decides to break the silence leaving me relieved.

"Sub, meet Mia. Mia meet Sub." He says sounding hurried.

Mia's voice cracks, showing the fear in her tone. "We've crossed paths before."
I gulp, praying it wasn't to noticeable. "Yeah." I croak, my voice sounding high and squeaky.
Robert pats me on the back, pushing me forwards.

"Well isn't it a happy reunion," He rolls his eyes and turns towards Mia, "Where's the safe?" He asks sounding annoyed.

She turns around and motions us to follow her. We oblige, following behind her in a single filed line. I felt like a penguin in a circus so I slightly drifted to the left, just to break the perfect sequence.

She brushes a torn white curtain to the side, revealing a metal safe just a few feet ahead of us. Robert rubs his hands together, almost exited.

"Now we're talking," he smiles, "I'm the muscle, and she's the brains. Together we're a great team."

I look at Mia briefly, but when we realize we both made eye contact, we quickly drift our eyes elsewhere.

"Do you know what's inside?" I question, curiously. Robert kneels and presses his ear against the lock. "Circuit breaker."

With a serious expression, Mia turns towards me, and looks me in the eye.

"After we cut the power, the backup generator will turn on. The generator has different permissions in the system, allowing me to unlock the doors from here."