Chronicle of Nautilus

Bonus Chapter: The Collective

"The Collective"

A short sci-fi story.

Naked humanoid lay on the floor in the dark. A cold, wet moisture filled the room. He inhaled and coughed. A moment passed, he lifted his back and using the little strength, he had, trembling, he pushed himself up.

It felt cold. It extended a long, wet-arm, grabbed a thick fur from a stone that lay in the darkness beside him and wrapped it around his shoulders.  A deep, three-dimensional vision filled his senses. He stamped a foot to the ground. The sound echoed to all directions. His vision intensified. He turned full circle and inspected an immense maze, his deep vision penetrating the corridors behind the walls.

 When the view began to dim, he smashed the ground with his foot once again. Now, he fixed his sight on the exit and moved towards it, leaving the cold and darkness behind.

 With each step, he felt better. With each step, the air got fresher. During his short walk, he came to his senses. It would take more time until he regained his memory, yet deep inside he knew that it was not the first time he had walked this path.

 The humanoid stepped into the light and covered his head with a four-fingered arm to protect it from the sunlight. He stood still so his body could adjust to the new environment. His pitch black skin absorbed the light falling on his skin. Heat spread through his entire body,  giving him strength, filling him with life.

 His masculine legs were bent at the knees, at the same angle as his back was bent at the waist.  The length of his arms was identical to that of the legs. The eye pits he had were empty. A light gray smoke steamed out of them. His bald head sitting on the short neck was hard and bony. Sharp bones stuck out of it, going downwards, disappearing under the fur and continuing through the spine at seemingly random intervals.

  The creature stamped his foot to the ground and felt sadness. No one was waiting for him. The rebirth was a celebration and the tribe would always come to greet and introduce him to the world. But not this time, this time there was no one.

 He dropped down the fur and stretched. He raised his head towards the sky and roared. The sound echoed through the yellow valleys and greenish lakes.  It would take only a small amount of time before his people heard and came.

The creature moved to a small pond and poured a handful of water into his mouth. He directed his eye sockets to the water but did not see the reflection.  Sound, changes in temperature and stretches of his mind were the things that helped him to perceive the world in this world so different from any other. He stood there, enjoying the view of water mixing with the warm light coming from the skies, steaming and rolling upwards.  He felt as if it had been centuries since he walked the surface of this planet. Each breath he took brought joy to his insides.

 Time passed, but no one came. He hard time imagining why. He heard animals and bugs crawling in the distance, the wind hitting the grass and the small trees on the other side of the pond. The world was alive, but it was different. He used an effort requiring much energy. He stretched his mind and attempted to sense his people, but found no one. He felt disturbed, there was no one who would tell him which time he was in, there was no one to communicate with. Loneliness, what was it? How would he cope with it?