The Story

“Come, child.” she said to the shivering girl. The girl was no more than 8 and had just stepped out of a hibernation pod; still in her wet clothes full of oxygenated goo. The child obediently followed the lady with a strange voice who helped her out of her wet clothes and into dry ones conveniently set on the bench beside her. The room was dimly lit and empty save for the giant pod in the middle that had housed her unconscious body for 4 months. Aya didn’t know why she had been woken up only that, if she was woken up there was probably a good reason. “You must be hungry, child.” Aya was, in fact, very hungry.

The kitchen was empty. Aya could see from behind the slim figure of the one that kept calling her “child” that lights leading up to the kitchen flickered to life as they walked by diminishing once again as they passed. She could no longer see the room she came from behind her. Lights flickered as they entered, and the woman started to prepare a meal for Aya. “What are you making?” the woman’s eyes flicked over to Aya’s. “How does macaroni sound?” Aya didn’t answer. Only because it didn’t look like macaroni, but she didn’t want to say that. The woman didn’t seem bothered by a lack of response, only kept going through the motions of putting colourful pebbles in a bowl and then into a device that looked like a microwave. After a couple of seconds, the bowl was set in front of Aya, with a spoon. Aya dug in. It was hot but she didn’t care. After a minute or two of intense spoonful shovelling, Aya looked up again at the woman. “What should I call you?” 

“You may call me M.” 

“Thank you, M.” 

Aya went back to eating. Not a minute had passed when the lights went out and it was suddenly very cold and dark, and not a fun place for an 8-year-old that just woke up to be in. She felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped. “There, there child. I am here.” Aya relaxed slightly and tried to feel around for M in the dark standing behind her. To her right was a window that showed the hallway they just came from. If she turned her head she could see that down the hall, lights were turning on and moving closer toward them. M’s hand on Aya’s shoulder tightened and pushed Aya to the floor underneath the table she was just eating her macaroni at. Aya watched as the lights outside the window turned on, one by one, but couldn’t see what was passing by. Only the lights. Aya wondered why M had made her hide. She almost asked but the lights stopped in front of the kitchen and again M’s hand tightened on her shoulder. She kept quiet. After what felt like an eternity to an 8-year old, the lights flickered off and continued to move past the kitchen window. 

Aya found herself wandering down the corridors. Flashlight in hand, the lights didn’t flicker on as she walked by. She swiped the keycard she stole from M on the door to the kitchen. It opened, she walked inside and immediately stopped. Flashlight off. 

...

She ran through the dark as best as she could. One hand feeling the wall as she ran. M was chasing her but she was wrong. She wasn’t M. 

I just gotta make it to 6b, I can do it. 

Aya chanted in her mind as she ran. 

....

M held Aya’s hand as she walked, once again, down the familiar hallway. Lights flicked on as they passed. The room they were going to was the one M had warned Aya to never open. At last, she would finally see what was inside. 

When the door opened, Aya was not expecting the smell. It hit her like a wall and she doubled over and threw up in the entrance to the room. “Sorry,” she said out of habit. M didn’t respond,  only shut the door behind them. The room was dark so Aya didn’t see what was causing the smell until it was too late. When the lights turned on, she was horrified to see... Herself. Copies of herself. Not breathing, and in various states decay. Aya turned to M who put her hands on either side of Aya’s face as the tears started to well up in her eyes. M snapped her neck. Aya’s body crumpled to the floor. 

“There, there, child,” murmured the woman as she walked back down the hall and into another room. This one, with a different hibernation pod.