Into the Code : Ark Survival Evolved : Book 1

Chapter 19 : Party Prep

*Ben's Perspective*

I woke up in a dark and cold room. I got up quickly, confused with my change in surroundings. The floor was made of a gray and smooth material that I would have guessed to be a metal of sorts. I walk out of the room and down a winding hallway. To both sides of me there were giant holograms off what looked like Earth that lined the twisting hallway. Creaks and groans faintly echos through the large gray chambers that I walked through.

The first one was on my left, and this one was of the Earth that I recognized. I could make out all the continents and the 2 poles. The second one that was to the right, but I was not the same Earth as the last hologram. It looked like a giant desert , devoid of the green. The third one was more reddish and looked more like a living hell. I kept walking down the hallway, ignoring the rest of the holographic displays. I approach a room, and see various colored beacons dropping down into the open space below.

A thin blue pulsing bridge connected to the other side. Walking across to the other side, I entered what looked like the main bridge of a spacecraft. The cold bitter air surrounded me that sent shivers down my spin. The open seamless glass windows that overlooked the vast expanse of space. The grey tile ground that seemed to have faint paths of blue flowing within it.

I continued my walk into the massive room, the riveted ramp that led to an indented section of the auditorium sized room. I was mesmerized by the surroundings technology and engineering, 4 massive columns held up the structure nice and firmly.

A loud thud cut me off and got my attention in a heartbeat. Turning around, I was greeted to the sight of a large diamond outline made of some type of metal that had veins of blue rippling through it. It was resting on an altar-like structure towards the large window. As I approached, the window revealed that the station was above the Earth's surface, in orbit.

I got close enough to the altar to make out the shape of the frame. It was the exact same shape as the implanted stone on my arm. My vision seemed to narrow but focus onto the frame. The altar had a faint hum that emanated from its structure.

I get right up to it, I have a strange urge to reach my arm out to it. I then get flung back with such force I flew all the way back to the back wall. The impact knocked all the air out of me as I bounced off the wall and landed on the cold floor. The impact echoed around the chamber like room. I looked up, weakened and out of breath, and see blue particles collecting around the center of the diamond frame. I got to my feet, stumbling and weakened. I looked at the frame, and watched the frame rise up slowly off the altar. Machine clicks and whirs followed as the altar disappeared into the floor of the station, and a large red eye appeared in the center of the frame with a deafening bass.

"You know who I am.."

The voice boomed out before the red filled my vision. And before long, I blacked out..

I shot up awake with a gasp before slamming my head on a low hanging rafter. Terra came rushing over to my side.

Terra : "Jeez Ben, are you ok?"

I slowed my breathing and managed to regain enough composure to ask her.

Ben : "Who's fucking idea was it to have that there..?"

I point to the rafter before letting out a groan of pain.

Terra : "Well, we didn't think that far ahead, we were more concerned with you at the time."

I rest my head on the pillow and look forward. Terra walked back over to what looked like a small station. Berries and fiber were strewn across its work surface, a medicine table.