The Red Button

Subject 32 Test 1

The bright, white light blinded me so I instead opted to stare down at the two buttons in front of me. Both were dull shades of a beautiful primary color, the on my right being a sad baby blue and the left a scary, almost blood red color. They were screwed down to the thick, metal table that had rusted over a long time ago.  Even the chair I sat on was a rusted, old metal.  The rust would flake off the chair if I touched it wrong and stuck to my skin.  Rashes spread across my sensitive skin as my arms scrapped against the arm rests that had partially corroded away.  A stale taste filled the ancient air as I breathed in heavily. My own breath echoed in my ears and seemed to amplify itself. I counted the seconds as they passed by to calm myself remembering the ticking of the clock. The sight of my breath in the air told me just how numb my bare arms were.

A long, metal chain connected both my arms to the chair allowing me to barely reach the two  buttons only a few inches away but nothing more. I couldn't even reach the top of my head without leaning down which made scratching an itch extra hard.  The clasps on my tiny wrists were relatively loose and hung like over sized bracelets off my slender arms. They were just tight enough to not make it past my wrists and off my hands. I could feel the chill of the floor through the soles of my tennis shoes. My imagination ran ramped allowing my legs and stop at my heart which was beating far to fast to be cold.

I wondered why I was here. I didn't remember how I got here or anything about myself at all really. My own name was on the tip of my tongue but I couldn't figure out how to say it. It didn't help that I had no idea what I looked like. Was I blonde with blue eyes or did I have obviously dyed black hair and freckles? I couldn't see my own hair which told me it was short. What about my parents? Did I have any? Was I rich or poor? Judging by my clothes, sweatpants and a t-shirt, I wasn't dirt poor. My pants were relatively clean but they had one red stain that had faded a bit. There was a blue ram on my white socks which were originally covered by the hem of my pants.

The only thing I remember from my past was a  small black clock on a calming green wall. I didn't understand the symbols on the clock in place of the numbers but I could still read the time perfectly. This only served to confuse me more as it had nothing to do with the situation I was currently stuck in. Why was a clock so important to me?

"Welcome, Subjects 32 and 74, to the testing room," a female, robotic voice spoke over the intercom. The bright light that had previously been shining in my eyes suddenly turned off allowing me to see what lay behind it. A large sheet of thick glass separated me and another person in a similar situation.  He looked to be quite young and I guessed I was too.  He was struggling with his restraints unlike me.  I was staring at him in curiosity.  He hadn't seemed to notice me yet as he was too focused on freeing himself. His dirty blonde faux Mohawk flopped back and forth as he squirmed around in his seat. I noticed he seemed a bit blurry and decided I needed glasses once I got out of where ever I was.

"In front of you are two buttons, red and blue," the voice continued. The guy finally notice me as he looked at the buttons. He raised an eyebrow and I shrugged to show I didn't know what was happening either. "The rules for this game are simple, whoever hits their button first will have their choice become a reality.  You many not change your choice after you press a button.  You must start with your whole hand touching the chair and wait for the count down before you move.  If you move early, you will be permanently and forcefully removed.  If you press the red button, the opposing player will be killed. If you press the blue button, you will died instead of the other player.  You may not speak or influence the other player's choice in any way.  One player must die in order for the other to leave the arena alive." The voice was extremely monotone was it explained the horrifying situation. I looked down at the buttons in absolute fear, scared of what would happen if I didn't press it first.

"Three," my heart beat like a bass drum in my ear. "Two," the other guy tensed up so badly I could see the veins popping out of his arms. He eyed me carefully and I knew which button he was going to press. "One." My hand moved surprisingly fast as I slammed down on the button. I quickly looked up to see the guy with his hand on a glowing red button, staring at me in surprise. I glanced down to see my own button glowing a bright blue in contrast to his  dark red.

"Well I guess either way, I win," I chuckled to myself without humor.