Fade Eternal | ONC 2023

One: the wrong elevator

The elevator car hummed as it rose.

At first glance, it seemed very ordinary. Smooth panels of metal lined the walls, and nice bright lights in the ceiling illuminated the car. There were even transparent doors that allowed its occupants to see the world outside. This was precisely where Fade started panicking.

There was no world outside the elevator.

There wasn't even a planet.

The empty void of space yawned outside, dotted with countless white stars that streaked past. It was so vast and dark that Fade felt like they were mere insects swallowed up by an unfathomable beast.

Why were they in space? How did an elevator even get into space? Perhaps more importantly, just how much alcohol did he drink last night?

Fade's eyes shifted to the other people in the elevator. They all rode in silence, standing motionlessly, their expressions bored. None of them seemed to be concerned about this whole situation.

But Fade was very concerned, because there was something wrong with these people too. They must have walked out of a sci-fi movie since they were kitted out in insane armored suits and weapons. One of them was an enormous bald dude that looked strong enough to give the Hulk a run for his money. His suit was gunmetal gray and had enough material to cover a tank.

Very quietly, Fade swallowed his saliva. He slowly pressed himself back into the corner of the elevator and prayed that none of these freaks noticed him.

That was when he became aware of the third problem. He felt strange. There was a weight on his arms, a light pressure against his chest. He looked down and immediately forgot how to breathe.

He'd been encased in silver. From neck to toe and even his hands, it was like a really bored engineer had spent hours covering him with intricate, interlocking pieces of silver metallic material that was nowhere as heavy as it looked. It was similar to what the other people in the elevator wore, except he didn't get the cool futuristic guns. All he got were two wimpy knives strapped to each thigh.

Dumbfounded, Fade flexed his fingers. There was no resistance. It was like he had bare hands. He touched his armored belly, admiring the contoured abs. Last time he checked, he had no abs. Or muscles, really. If this futuristic space armor wanted to give him abs, then great. No complaints from him.

It was just...why was he in this armor?

Once again, he lifted his gaze to the others. Maybe he was missing something here. Perhaps he'd gone to a nerd convention after getting black-out drunk and ended up with strange new friends.

'Friends' who tricked him onto an impossible space elevator. He narrowed his eyes.

Besides the bald hulk, there was a gorgeous woman with long red hair cascading down her neon green armor. Her eyes glowed electric green, which unsettled him. People weren't supposed to have iridescent eyeballs, at least not in the modern world he was familiar with.

Unless she was a robot. That sort of technology was really starting to take off, but never had he imagined it coming this far. She really was impressive.

He retracted his gaze, suddenly wary. Killer robots were a very real thing. In movies, anyway. He'd be an absolute fool to get on her bad side, especially since she'd easily be able to throw him out of the elevator and into space. He peered through the transparent doors. Stars moved across the black, giving the impression that the elevator travelled upwards at a steady pace.

Oh my word.

Reality started to sink in. Fade would have considered this a dream, but there was a growing ache in his skull, like his brain was swelling and starting to push against its cage. You weren't supposed to feel pain in dreams, right?