At World's End

Chapter Five

I actually identified one.

I can't believe it. Team 14 reported back and said that they had one in custody. I don't know if I'm happy about getting one or betrayed that the leaders lied to us. I guess that'll have to wait.

Maybe I'll finally get promoted to the next rotation. It always has better jobs.

The people in the custody rooms called me down to "talk". They always do that with people who have actually found outsiders. At least, that's what they told us. As far as I know, there are no outsiders.

The boy I found was filthy. That's the first thing I noticed. He was wearing sparse clothing, probably provided by the officers in the compound. He sat in a strapped chair, held down by cuffs around his arms, legs, and chest. He was unconscious, apparently under some sort of anesthesia. At least, I hope it was anesthesia and not another, more physical way of rendering someone unconscious.

The lab techs told me that he was suffering from some sort of PTSD and he was prone to violent behavior, proven by the multiple methods they were forced to use to sedate him. He, whom they named Citizen 374, as we all had a number (mine was 196), was found in the exact place where I had told Team 14 to look.

Then came the real questions.

How did you know he was there? Blinking light on the monitor.

How did you know it wasn't a computer glitch? I didn't. It's just protocol  to send out teams when alerts pop up.

Are you working with those on the outside?

That one I didn't understand. 

The leaders told us that they had rounded everyone up from the attacks and brought them here. I guess it's kind of hard to tell when no one can remember anything from before the devastation. The leaders are the ones who brought us together; the ones who made order from chaos, peace from war. Everyone trusts them, our saviors.

After a few rounds of these questions, probably probing for overlapping stories, the lab techs, or should I call them "interrogators", walked out of the room and left me sitting there, not knowing whether to move or wait to be told.

I decided to wait, which ended with my getting yelled at and asked furiously why I was still sitting in an empty room with nothing but a table to keep me company.

I scurried back to the Comm Room, unsure of what to do now. A few minutes later, a call came in for me to return to the lab.

Sighing dramatically, I got up and prepared for another round of interrogation.