Delta

Chapter Twenty: The Change of Plans

Despite having to sleep on the floor, I actually managed to doze off into an uneasy sleep. I woke up repeatedly and had to flip over onto my other side once my shoulder got sore. I found myself wishing that the morning would come already.  The next time I awoke was from the alarm that blared through the room. I pressed my head into the pillow and threw my hand over my exposed ear to block out the noise.

After a few seconds the alarm stopped and I sat up. A thin white sheet slid down from my chest. I looked down in confusion. When had I gotten a blanket? Wait, and a pillow? I looked over to Adrian who was sitting on the edge of the bed drearily looking around the room. The pillow and sheet were gone from the bed.

"You didn't have to do this." I said, gesturing to the blanket as I stood up. I winced as my whole body ached. I clutched my waist in pain and realized that I had failed to remove the rod and dagger from the sheath at my side. I had been lying on it most of the night. That explained the pain. Besides the usually aches I would expect to have from lying on the floor, my shoulders and arms hurt like hell from the chest compressions I had done the day before.

"You seemed cold. We were wet after all. And I figured it was only fair." Adrian said as he stood up. He winced and put his hand against the wall for a few seconds.

"How do you feel?" I asked, walking over to him.

"A little sore but I'll be okay," he responded.

I figured that he felt a little worse than a 'little sore' but there wasn't anything that I could do for him. He walked over to the table and picked up a half of the bread that I had placed back down on the table. He scrunched up his face as he broke off a piece.

"Yeah, it's pretty gross." I commented as I walked over and picked up my half. I shoved it into my pocket.

"Please do not loiter in the checkpoint room." A computerized voice announced.

"Let's get out of here." Adrian said bitterly, tucking his remaining half of bread into the pocket of his jacket.

I rolled my eyes and followed him over to the door. I was feeling cranky this morning, for whatever reason. Probably a result of my uncomfortable night's sleep. I thought about how we had no plan. Where we just going to obediently go through each test chamber? We weren't making any progress towards getting out of the facility! Why weren't we making a plan right now?

I was about to point this out as Adrian hit the now green button and the door slid open. I stopped myself short as we walked through and I saw what lay ahead. We were standing in a small hallway. At the end of the hallway about fifteen feet away was another steel door. Part of the wall beside us had collapsed, revealing a different hallway. I knew it wasn't part of the test chambers because instead of being completely white, it had the same dark maroon carpets and brown walls as the office buildings we had been in before. 

"Hello, it's me again. It's been a while since the last time we've chatted, and I figured now is a perfect opportunity for us to talk again." 

The familiar cool female voice echoed out of the hidden speakers. I felt myself stiffen. This couldn't be good. Elsa didn't talk to us often.

"You two kids have really been behaving yourselves lately, completing the tests so willingly. I have to admit, this behavior really shocked me, especially from you."

A fluorescent light above me exploded, sending sparks raining down on me. I yelped as they burned my skin and frantically hurried to swat them away. What did she mean by that? I had barely interacted with her.

"I figured that as a reward, I'll give you two options; you can either go through that door there at the end of the hall and resume testing, or you can climb through this helpful hole in the wall and explore the rest of the facility. What do you think?"

Adrian and I glanced at each other with the same doubtful look. We were both thinking the same thing; It's a trap.

"Now, I know you don't believe me. I should probably add that you will have to go through one certain area of the facility that is certainly less than desirable. However, if you make it through, you can wander around the rest of the facility again, doing whatever you did before you wound up here. The choice is yours."

She stopped talking and I turned to Adrian, ready to consult with him about the two options.

"Oh! I've nearly forgotten. Adrian dear, is that what your friends call you? I'm afraid you won't be sticking around long enough to make a decision. I've decided that in order to make things a little more exciting, I'm going to switch around these little groups you have established with your other friends. It will also give me the chance to test out something I've been working on!"

All of a sudden, a bright yellow beam came out of nowhere and shone right on Adrian. His eyes widened and he tried to move but he seemed frozen in place. I ran forward but a force field flung me back. I stumbled but managed to stay on my feet.

"I call it the Disassembly Machine. It's not really a machine, as you can tell, but you get the idea. The idea is that it teleports you to the location I choose by disassembling your cells and particles, and reassembling you somewhere else! A genius invention, if you ask me. Now, it's still in its testing stages, so I can't promise that you'll make it in one piece. If you find yourself reassembled missing a limb or vital organ, you'll know why. 

"Anyways, it's about time we go. Say goodbye to your friend! It's probably the last time you'll be seeing her. Say goodbye Adrian. Or, as the one Italian man who worked here said to his wife seconds before he was reduced to ashes; Arrivederci amore mio, addio per sempre."

And then in a flash of light, Adrian was gone, and I was left wondering what was going to happen next.