<-3D->

Chapter 3: 107

107 stood in the white hall, contemplating the wall in front of him. Clearly, it wasn't all it seemed. Clearly. Hmmm. 107 gazed at the pure white walls in interest, finally walking up to the wall and running a finger across the surface before yanking it back in surprise. So smooth and hard and just slippery and perfect. How? He was already so used to the damp, rugged brick walls at the Institute. He smiled slightly almost, gazing around him. Although he could see all the walls around him and ahead of him, he still saw the walls had a sort of feel to them that gave the impression that he was in a vast expanse of sorts.
He heard air pressure being released and suddenly a a door slid open from the wall. He flinched at the sudden sound. That hadn't been there before. He was sure of it. He started thinking less about who he was and more 'when' he was. For technology like all he had seen so far, it must be...
His train of thought halted just as the girl stepped out of the room and the door slid back shut. It was the girl from before. The one with the blue hair. Viv.
She smiled warmly at him before gesturing for him to follow. "Come with me," she told him in a welcoming voice.
"The door slid closed then and 107 flinched yet again. "Wha- it - where did the door go?" 107 stammered as he pointed to the wall where the door had just been.
"Viv gave a tiny giggle, covering her mouth and smile. "No, I'm sorry. Probably should have explained. Um, we're in an old Institution shelter/hideaway or as they used to be called and what their code name still is: H.A.D.E.S."
"H.A.D.E.S.?" 107 asked curiously as Viv started to walk away from him and down the hall that seemed to lead to nowhere. He didn't move or make any attempt to follow her, staying firmly planted where he stood.
"Yes, H.A.D.E.S.," Vivere replied, noticing he wasn't following and turning around. "You okay?"
107 nodded silently, gazing at her hand. "I just don't know whether or not to trust you," he told her bluntly and honestly.
Vivie was silent for a moment but then she absorbed his reply and smiled in a friendly way. "Believe me, you can definitely trust me. I'm nothing like the people at the Institution. "I'm not Cronus."
107 hesitantly followed her but she kept talking, aware that he was just sort of trailing behind her. "The Institution was a cover for the H.A.D.E.S. terror group. They claimed to be aiding children all over the world with defects, deficiencies, and disabilities. The parents would beg their children to be taken, knowing they'd never see them again. They assumed it would be best for the child and parents normally want what is best for their kids. So...they gave everyone up. Anything from cancer to ADHD to allergies to aspergers. It was all supposedly 'cured,'" Viv told him with a little shrug, still walking.
107 frowned again. "What went wrong?" he asked, still following here down the echoing hallway, the distant sound of a leaking drainpipe breaking the silence.
Vivere looked back up at him, almost incredulous. "No, nothing went wrong. It all pretty much went according to plan. The process is called the Novo which means the change. It starts with the basic torture to test endurance and then on to the replacing. They do cure your flaws but replace them with strengths. Whatever deficiencies you may have had before, they are now like supercharged strengths. Afterwards, they train you to be a centurion, a cognitio, or a responsal. A centurion is a soldier, cognition is a researcher, and responsal is a rep. Then, they wipe your memories clean and you don't remember anything except things you may have learned in school before or what they taught you at the Institute since it is also a place of learning too. But the memory wiping is what we call Sweeping."
107 nodded, that word sounding familiar for some reason. "Sweeping," he whispered to himself softly.
Viv nodded. "Yes, Sweeping."
107 blinked. "Sweeping." So familiar yet it seemed so vile and cruel. "Why were they doing it all and why are we all so different from that lady at the Institute?"
Vivere continued onward down the hall. "Oh, we didn't get to the last stage is all."
"What's the last stage?"
She sighed. "The Ultim. The finalization in other words."
107 nodded. "Wow. That's just so messed up..." He trailed off sadly.
She nodded, still walking. "I know it is."
They continued to walk down the pure white hallway, footsteps echoing around them. They finally reached the very end but just as before, 107 assumed it was part of the hall and would go on and walked right into it. He gasped slightly under his breath, rubbing his nose and stepping back while giving the wall a cautionary gaze.
Vivie chuckled and pressed her hand against the wall, the whole thing lighting up with an electric blue color and the outlines of the door turning blue on the wall. It moved forward slightly and opened up, revealing a large hole behind it that they were able to step through and beyond that...
"Amazing..." 107 breathed, taking it all in.
Vivere smiles proudly, nodding as she looked over all the rebellion had built over time.
The place was massive, almost the size of a small neighborhood with a dirt ground and high ceilings. On the ground were tents and a few other, smaller buildings that were creatively constructed and spread out in lines across the area. A few tunnels were dug into the ground and walls on the side of the massive room. 107 could even see an arena in the back and signs along the tunnels.
He smiled slightly just as Viv turned to him and saw her head being slammed into the wall.