2022

Part 2

Apollo

Today was an important day, I woke up extra early to spearhead the operation that was commencing at 06:00. I walked to the subway gate and swiped my card, the machine beeped green and I walked through. When I stepped around the corner I saw Kane sitting, waiting for the train.

"The first train doesn't come till 02:00. What are you doing here? What are you even doing up?" I stood above him next to where he sat while I talked to him. He didn't look up though.

"I couldn't sleep, and I needed some fresh air." Kane looked up.

"Are you nervous?" I asked.

"I guess." Kane looked at his phone. "I still have 4 hours till sync? I think I will get some food."

"That is smart, you will need the energy."

"Liquid cooling systems are green." "Sound deadening systems green" "Breo Tech is green" "Tubes are green." The radio was busy, operators double and tripled checking systems. One system malfunction and the sync reading could be biased. The radio fell silent and the 6 head operators in the room looked to me for direction. "Pilot?" I asked "He is not in the tube. He is changing as we speak." "Stand by for pilot." I announced.

After a minute or two one of the head operators looked at me and said "Pilot has just entered plug."

"Kane, can you hear me?" I asked

"Yes." He replied over the radio.

"Systems?" I looked back to the operators

"All systems are green." The operator announced. I looked out to the plugs through the massive glass window, knowing that one held the answer.

"Ok Kane, listen to me very carefully. I want you to relax, send everything away from your mind, think of nothing, and focus only on being one with your Eva. Ok?" "Ok." He replied.

"Begin sync." The radio chatter started again and the lights on our wall began going from red to green.

"His sync was as projected. Average." I spoke to the commander.

"What about Ceann?" The commander spoke with very little emotion. He knew what he wanted.

"The same, average." I looked down at my feet.

"Good. Run the same test after a week of them living together, minimum training." The commander spoke like he spoke from a script. I always wondered what was going on behind those cold eyes. I soon found out.

Kane

The moon hung high this night. The stars poked holes in the black. I stood on my balcony looking to the skies for answers, but I didn't find any. I never found any. I just opened one day and I could find what I was looking for. Do I even know what I am looking for? I looked down the side of the building, then up. All the lights were out and the night was as silent as every other one. A street light flickered below me, and I looked. Watching it for a while, seeing if it would flicker again. The moon seemed to move above me. I need to sleep. I walked into the apartment that I was staying in. I still had no idea when Ceann was going to get here, I wonder if he is gonna stay here, I hope so. I need another person here to help break up the place. I slide the door open that leads into my room. The room was dark, and small. It was so uncomfortable. It felt like someone else's. Like I was squatting in someone else's life. The walls were bare, no holes from drunk dads, no stains on the carpet, no faint smell of cigarettes. I think I can fix one of those. I opened my desk drawer and pulled the box of cigarettes out of it. I lit one and took a deep draw, letting the smoke fill my lungs.

Ceann

The whole plane shook as the wheels touched the runway. It was a regular old passenger plane that I was on, but besides me there were only a handful of people flying to Japan. Walking off the plane, and into the terminal, the airport was full and busy. Everyone was leaving. I looked out the window into the blue sky, only one or two small white clouds blocked the baby blue. The deep color was so relaxing. A tall skinny girl standing in a crowd of people waved at me and held up a small sign that had my name on it. She was a small Japanese girl that wore a bright yellow dress with small dots all over it. She easily stood out of the crowd of old men wearing black suits.