Saorsa

Chapter One - E-419

The wind blew into the experiment's face, making him shiver once more as he rubbed two rocks together over a bundle of sticks, thin and thick, big or small. Over and over, until it made a faint spark. His face lit up, the corner of his lips turning up and a relieved exhale-laugh came from his throat. He had been dehydrated for hours, and because of that, the laugh may have sounded dry, or raspy.

He wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't come out.

He whispered the words instead, 'I hope this works; I need this to work.'

The young adult swallowed the lump in his throat, as he kept rubbing the rocks together repeatedly, keeping the small sparks close to the sticks.

How long will this take?, he thought. A big spark came up from the rocks and hit the sticks, creating some smoke and a small fire. Yes!, he exclaimed internally.

As he continued rubbing the rocks together for some more sparks, he quickly stopped to increase the fire with some leaves near him, and twigs or sticks nearby.

The smoke rose, leaving a trail above.

His hands hovered over the fire, absorbing the warmth that finally came to him. "Please, someone come." He whispered gently, but alas, no answer had been given back.

A siren from a distance away went off, startling the boy completely. His thoughts quickly resorted to the lab. Had they figured out that he escaped so quickly already? This can't be happening, the experiment thought. I can't go back. Not ever.

Despite the boy's desperate need for help, he put out the fire to prevent attracting attention by the guards who are searching for him, and only him at the moment.

It was obvious that the boy couldn't have gone far, into the woods was as far as he could go anyways; everything led to a dead-end, or a tall wall that separated the outside world from the lab. Even with his vast curiosity, the boy couldn't imagine himself going across. There would be so many new sights, discoveries, things that the boy wouldn't have known in all his life.

The thought stressed him, but he had no time to waste; he needed to hide, prevent from being found once more. He couldn't imagine the things they'd do to him if they ever found him. He could be electrocuted, or worse have his turns in being experimented on doubled.

How long will it be until the boy can roam freely with out being looked at like a criminal, or a failure in this crippled society? Possibly never, given the circumstances.

With all these thoughts running in the boy's head, he brought himself up quickly and ran as far as he could, despite the leaves and twigs crunching and snapping underneath him with each swift step. He panted, his lungs burning like a forest fire.

Where do I go from here? Where can I go?

Nonetheless, the boy ran as far as he could until he found himself facing a tall rock barrier.

I can't cross this.

Fear surged through the boy, as he put the palms of his hands to the bumpy rock wall, feeling the rough texture, and the little bits and pieces that chisel off occasionally. He thought for a minute, I've always wanted to see what's on the other side. Only a peek.

He lifted his right knee, as his left arm raised up to climb up. Then he lifted his left knee, and his right arm to hold himself up. It's like..mountain climbing. Except I've never climbed a mountain. He climbed up, and up. The barrier seemed like it lasted forever up. But wasn't that the point? The boy stopped to catch his breath, despite his muscles aching for a break. He needed to leave this place, now or never.

But suddenly, a voice came from under.

"Hey! Little man!" A young, but fairly grown man's voice yelled up from under, possibly from the ground. The man must have some sort of strange eyesight to be able to see that far. The boy looked down, only to see a man who looks like those surfer men from the movies.

"You..uh, you could've gone the short way, you know?" The man said, his voice a bit awkward now that he got the boy's attention.

"What?" The boy whispered out, before climbing down by impulse. The man backed away to give him some space. That, and it's not likely that an escaped teenage experiment would be friendly to a complete stranger.

"There is a . . . other way to get past! I can show you. If you trust me." The man replied to the boy's whisper, but the boy did not reply back. He examined the older man, mostly seeing how much older he looks.

"Who are you?" The boy mumbled, his voice rather curious, and the older man noticed.

"Oh! I'm Raymond; Ray for short. And you are? You look familiar." The man exclaimed, examining the young one in front of him. The boy did the same, quickly recognizing the older man, and the introduction gave him a head-start on the idea. He backed away, starting to fiddle with his hands, despite the ache it came with from the cold and constant running.

"Ah, I know you, little man. You're one of those kids at the lab? Let me take a guess. E-419? I know that name might not sit well with you. You know, I know your real name." Raymond smiled, his voice oddly teasing, but completely suspicious, in the boy's opinion.

". . . You do?" E-419 mumbled, wincing at the thought of his experiment name. E-419. It was like poison on his tongue. He did truly want to know his real name. That's what he longed for, for as long as he can remember.

"Yes sir. You wanna know?" Raymond's eyebrows raised, almost curiously. E-419 nodded, but paused slightly. He seemed to be hesitating, and Raymond had noticed this quickly. "How 'bout a nickname? For starters." He suggested, and E-419 considered it, and then confidently nodded.

"Okay." Raymond mumbled, thinking for a moment. E-419 nodded, waiting for his given nickname. "I got it. It's quite plain, but it'll do for now. We'll just call you . . . E. For the time being, that is!" Raymond exclaimed, his voice almost excited by his own idea. 'E', however, was a bit confused at it. E? Like the letter? It puzzled him, but at least it didn't include numbers.

"I . . . like it." E mumbled, his voice kind but vaguely disappointed. He hoped for something a bit more creative.

"Good! Do you still want me to show you the easy way out of here?" Raymond asked, the corners of his lips turning up slightly that E was somewhat happy with this new nickname. E nodded, and started to follow behind Raymond. He hoped this wouldn't be a trick.