When Forever Ends (Part 1: A Game of Chess)

XII

~{§}~

T w e l v e

After that terrifying encounter, Erin realized that it was getting pretty late, so she showed us to our rooms. They were in a part of the facility that contained mainly living quarters, arranged in a hotel-like fashion.

Compartment 36B was to be mine. It was large, compared to some of the other ones I'd seen, so I assumed it must've been intended for someone fairly important. I had three rooms in the compartment: a kitchen area complete with enough food to last me at least a week (Erin assured me that there was plenty more in case we stayed that long), a bedroom with what looked like a larger version of the screen on Sofie's iPod mounted to the wall opposite the bed, and, of course, a bathroom, which I took advantage of almost immediately.

It had been some time since I had cleaned myself and the water from the shower felt rejuvenating, washing away the dust that caked my body. I felt a little ashamed at the amount of water I'd used, since who knew how much of it could be found in the middle of a desert, but because this place was built in the desert and it seemed so futuristic, it was bound to have some high tech filter and recycling system so not a drop of water was wasted.

I emerged from the steamy room, feeling very fresh and loving it. I found a large selection of clean clothes in the closet and tossed on a simple tee shirt and shorts to sleep in. Then, I went out into the hallway to see how my friends were getting on.

The compartment to the left of mine, 34B, was Maya's, the two to the right, 38B and 40B, were Sofie's and Will's.

I knocked first on Will's door, then on Sofie's. "Good night!" I said.

Sofie stuck her head out the door. "You too."

"G'night!" Will called.

Before I could tap on Maya's door, however, it opened suddenly and I came face to face with her.

"Night," I told her.

"Mm-hm," she whispered, her thoughts obviously preoccupied. "Do you think we can trust her?" she nodded at Erin's compartment across the hall.

"I think so," I answered. "I just have this feeling, you know?"

"Not really. But if you trust her, then I do too. Good night." She gave me a quick hug, then receded into her room.

I crossed the hall to compartment 37B and rapped softly on the door. There was no reply, so I let myself in.

Erin's quarters were exactly the same as mine, except for a few personal belongings, like a framed photograph and bookcase with what I presumed to be her favorite books, and a wooden desk beside the bed. There was a light on over the desk and a thick, old-looking book lay open on its surface. I flipped to the first page.

Day 1

They came in the night. It was with no warning, one moment I was settling into bed, the next, the windows were smashed in by huge, gloved hands. I was terrified, the fear rushing through me like a rabid animal...

There were many more entries after that one, with larger and larger day numbers. I skimmed through most of them and was stopped by a voice.

"It's not very polite to go through other people's stuff."

"Sorry, Erin. I-er, it was an accident."

"I'm sure it was." She slammed the book closed and it tumbled onto the floor.

"That's a very interesting book you have there," I said.

"Huh," she sat on the bed and blew a stray strand of hair from her face.