The sun was descending, but it was still muggy out. They had been walking for hours and were drenched with sweat. During that time, the people around the world had suddenly snapped out of their dazes and started to move again. Like being in a prolonged day dream, their minds were still conscious, but just in a suspended state. None of them seemed to notice that everyone else had also been under a trance, or if they did, they did not completely grasp what had happened. Most people stumbled around in confusion. Their throats were sore, eyes dried out, and some even soiled themselves. There had even been a few deaths that occurred from people who were at the top of stairs and lost their balance, or who were swimming at the time of the global event, but most of the injuries were from sunburn and dehydration.
Since Alex and her friends were not around any people, they did not know the global sleep state had ended. They also felt comfortable ditching their head wraps without fear of being recognized. It felt good for Alex to no longer have to hide her face. To pass the time, they got to know each other better, told jokes, and shared stories. Aris was in the middle of a story, “… then all of the sudden, these dogs came out of nowhere and started chasing me—”
“Guys, we’re being followed,” Glitch interrupted.
There was a bridge up ahead about a hundred yards away. The three of them kept walking toward it as if everything were normal. Alex casually reached behind her head and pulled her scarf over to conceal her face. She glanced around, but did not see anyone.
“Are you sure?” she whispered.
“I’m sure,” Glitch affirmed. “There are three men behind us and another three are up ahead. They’re waiting until we reach the bridge before they make their move.”
“Glitch, are we going to be okay?” Alex asked worriedly.
“We’ll be fine, just stay close to me.”
Since Glitch’s senses were super astute, he picked up on the bandits before anyone else. Without knowing what kind of danger, if any, they were in, they each remained on alert. Aris slowly reached into his satchel and pulled out his stun gun, while Alex made sure her neck was limber in case there was an altercation that turned physical.
“Maybe they’re friends of yours,” Aris suggested.
“I assure you, they are no friends of mine. There’s a hospital a few kilometres away, I told my friends to meet us there.”
“Can you tell them to come help us?”
“Sure, but if these people cause us problems, my friends will never make it here in time. I’ll notify them anyway just to let them know we may be in trouble.”
Most citizens were kind, but Alex and Aris were in the middle of nowhere, on the other side of the world from where they grew up. It was certainly possible that people were not as civilized as they were in big cities. While in prison, Alex had met many opportunistic and dangerous criminals, so she was well aware those types of people existed in the world.
When they reached the bridge, that’s when Alex and Aris saw the men hiding. With nowhere else to go, they decided to take a chance and cross the bridge. At the halfway point, the men came out of hiding. They all wore masks and matching attire to show their unity. One of them was holding a large machine gun while the other two were brandishing samurai swords. Alex and her friends stopped in their tracks. Behind them, three more thugs emerged and moved in to cut off their escape.
“What are they supposed to be, ninjas?” Aris asked
“I don’t know, why don’t you ask them?” Glitch replied.
“I don’t suppose you have any tricks up your sleeve that will disarm these goons?”
“Just be cool, let’s see what they want,” Glitch said.
Addressing the one with the machine gun, Glitch asked. “How much do you want to allow us to pass?”
“I’m afraid it’s not that simple,” the man said. “We know who you are.”
Glitch noticed a tattoo on the man’s wrist, it was a silhouette of a fox. “Are you The Fox?” Glitch asked.
“Me?” the man laughed. “No, I am not The Fox, but I do work for him.”
“Tell us where he is,” Glitch demanded.
“I’ll do you one better, I’ll take you to him. But first, dismount your access pods.”
With reluctance, they each unlatched the access pods on their wrists and handed them over. Then without warning, the man threw them into the river. “Now, get on your knees.”
“Who are you and what do you want with us?” Glitch asked.
“My name is Jaisu, and I’ll be your captor for this evening,” the man laughed.
Jaisu instructed two of his henchmen to bind the captives’ hands and place sacks over their heads to obstruct their vision. Alex and her friends shuffled back to their feet and followed the squad into town. There was a chance Glitch’s friends would arrive and get involved in the situation, but they didn’t count on it.
Bound and blindfolded, Alex, Aris, and Glitch marched along for what seemed like a longer distance than it actually was. They were being led to a secret location — a once-abandoned factory that had been repurposed into a lair for the squad of rebels. Their motives were not clear, but they seemed to be expecting Alex and her friends. Given the condition of Yashio, it was doubtful that a mastermind like The Fox would have his headquarters there. Nevertheless, the group did what they were instructed to do without any resistance. As they had no idea who The Fox was or where he was located, being captured and taken to him was actually a blessing in disguise.
They arrived at the factory and the group could immediately tell their environment had changed. The ground they were walking on became smooth, and the air was noticeably cooler. They figured they were inside some sort of building.
Alex didn’t say a word as she was led down a long corridor inside the basement of the abandoned factory. Without her sense of sight, she just assumed she was still with her friends, but for security reasons, the rebels kept them separated. Aris and Glitch were collateral in this whole mess, and were kept mainly for insurance purposes.
Alex focused on the sounds around her and only heard three sets of footsteps.
“Aris… Glitch?” she said. There was no answer.
Alex got nervous and struggled to free herself from her restraints. She twisted and yanked, but it was no use, they were secured tightly to her wrists and ankles. She felt an incline underneath her feet as she was being led up some kind of ramp.
“Where are you taking me?” she asked nervously.
There was no answer.
All of a sudden, Alex felt a hand being placed on her back just before she was shoved forcefully from behind. Stumbling forward, she tripped over herself and came crashing down on her side. With her hands pinned behind her back, she had nothing to brace her fall. She let out a wheezing breath as she hit the hard and cold concrete. She then heard the footsteps of someone coming closer and stopping next to her.
Listening intently, the next sound she heard was the same pulsating electricity emanating from Aris’s stun gun. For a brief moment she thought Aris had come to rescue her, but that wishful thinking was short-lived. The stun gun was jammed into her neck, giving her nervous system a vicious jolt and causing excruciating pain. As an uncontrollable reflex, she gritted her teeth as the rest of her muscles were temporarily inoperable.
The ropes binding her hands and feet were removed. She then felt two hands grab her under her armpits and hoist her back to her feet. She was placed in a reclining chair and her arms and legs were strapped down. The sack was still over her head, which made the experience even more terrifying as she could not anticipate what was about to happen or get a sense of her surroundings.
As Alex lay helpless in the chair, she felt the sharp and abrupt prick of a needle as it was forced into the side of her neck. It didn’t take long for the injected fluids to circulate her bloodstream, and within seconds she was unconscious.
When Alex finally regained consciousness, she had no reference as to know how much time had passed or what had been done to her.
“Hello, Alex,” an ominous voice spoke.
The Fox wasn’t in the room, but Alex had no way of knowing this. His voice emitted through various speakers all around her. As she had yet to recover her composure, she was unsure if the voice was real or a part of some dream she was having. She opened her eyes, but her vision was still obstructed by the cloth bag that was affixed over her head. Several bright lights from above poured through the fabric, but other than that, her knowledge of her surroundings was limited.
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” the voice spoke again.
“What do you want from me?”
“I want to understand your gifts.”
“I told you, I no longer have those gifts.”
“That’s not true. Hidden within your DNA are the answers that I seek. All I need to do is unlock that mystery, but it may take some time. Fortunately, I have all the time I need.”
Alex squirmed in her chair, but could barely budge. Each of her limbs was strapped down tightly. The only thing she could do was focus on the man’s voice.
“Are you going to let me go?” she asked.
“I haven’t decided yet,” The Fox said. “I’ve waited a long time for this moment, and want to savour it.”
Alex had no idea what that last comment meant or how long the man had waited, but she detected a sense of retribution. She let him continue to talk in hopes he would inadvertently reveal clues to his true identity.
“You’ve had a very privileged life, Ms. Gray,” he chuckled in disgust. “You and your abilities… and yet you know so little of where they came from. It’s a shame really.”
“What are you talking about?” Alex shouted in no particular direction.
“Everything seems to come so easy for you — the youngest person to graduate, breezing through problems without breaking a sweat, saving the planet all in an afternoon. It must be nice to be that perfect. Believe it or not, I’m actually doing you a favour, I’m helping you appreciate what you have and building character within you. Is victory ever as sweet without first tasting defeat? Can there ever be joy in our lives without experiencing pain? Your life must be so empty.”
“You’re wrong if that’s what you believe. You don’t know a thing about me.”
“Don’t I?” the voice said.
“Do you have any idea the emotional pain I’ve endured growing up thinking my parents abandoned me like some unwanted piece of garbage? There were no visits, no correspondence, nothing. Do you know how many nights I’ve lain awake, staring out the window, crying until my eyes hurt? And having no friends because everyone resents me for what I am, labelling me as perfect, and drawing predetermined conclusions about me without even taking the time to get to know me…”
As Alex spoke, her emotions came flooding in. Her eyes began to well up with tears as she recalled all the pain in her life.
“Nearly everyone who looks at me says, ‘oh, she’s had it so easy, she’s beautiful, she’s our saviour’… do you have any idea what that does to a person’s psychology, what kind of burdensome pressure that is? Constantly having to live up to this impossible ideal and never being allowed to make a mistake.
“Do you know that I can’t even go out in public without wearing some kind of disguise? I don’t expect you to understand any of that because you are a soulless coward who has no feeling. So when you say that a person needs to experience pain to appreciate the good in their life, I agree… I’ve felt pain, and that’s why it’s going to feel so good when I kill you.”