Into the Darkness

Chapter 3

Benedict was right, attached to the box with duct tape is a sleeping mat and blanket all rolled up. Ireland helps me set it up in an empty spot near the wall. She explains that technically this one is mind but nobody really cares where you sleep. I finally bring up the courage to ask her something that I have been wondering since I get here.

"Whats with all the colored knives?" I have noticed five colors since I got here. Black, blue, orange, red and green. Nevada and the girl twin(I can't remember her name) both have blue like me. Ireland's is a bright red. "Do they mean something?"

She just shrugs, "We don't really know. Benedict's been killing himself trying to figure it out though. But now that you're here we do have three of every color." She pauses for a moment as she smooths out a corner of my blanket, "And apparently it's important that we keep these colors because Dale tried to switch with Nevada so he would have the same color as his sister and the Voice freaked out. It was the first time the Voice had spoken in over a year."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah. He threatened to stop sending down food and water if they didn't switch back. It must be important that we all have one too because he sent one down with Dale's sleeping bag."

"Why wouldn't Dale have one?"

She glances over nervously at Dale. He is playing cards with his twin and Benedict under the naked bulb. A couple others are watching them and whispering to each other. Dale has a bright orange knife and Benedict's is a pastel green, "Because he never went all the way through the maze and the Voice is more than a little bitter about it."

I am a little skeptical of this, "Then how did he get here?"

"Did you have to do the cliff with the control room?"

I remember the long way down in the dark. The control room that I thought I wasn't supposed to go into. My dad bleeding out on the floor. I remember it all too clearly I nod. "Didn't everyone have to do that?"

She shakes her head, "I didn't, Kara didn't and a few others. We think the voice switches out some stuff sometimes."

"Oh" Why did I have to then? Why couldn't I have done something else?

"Well she almost killed him but he didn't stay unconscious as long as the voice planned. He escaped" She sucks in a breath, "when they got here the voice delivered and orange knife and one of the black suits with the sleeping gear."

I nod again. the knives are obviously very important to him. And the armor too. Maybe that isn't the only thing that matters, "Does Benedict ever find anything that connects us? That tells us why this happened to us."

She sighs but shakes her head, "Nothing all that useful. Just stupid stuff like we all speak English although Karina also speaks French and Vincent speaks Spanish. Argus and Eliot are both from England. My name is Ireland and that's where he's from. Allie's last name is King and Nevada is from Kingston Australia."

"Do any of them have the same colored knife. That could be it" I ask hopefully 

"Nope, but if you want to help with that stuff I'm sure Benedict would love it. He writes the stuff on the cardboard boxes from meals."

I nod. And that is exactly what I am going to do. Tomorrow. "When do you go to bed here?"

She shrugs, "Whenever, the light never goes off so people just come over to this dark corner and sleep when they want to. Most of us sleep sometime after dinner though. Nobody's ever too loud though."

"Thanks."

"No problem it has been a year but I still remember what it was like to be new. How scary it all was. I slept two days straight when I got here." She stands and starts to walk off, "Sleep tight!"