Refracted

- - 36 - -

The noise of the gun ricocheted around the room as evidence that I had fired. Other than that? Nothing. Nobody dramatically fell to the floor; nobody bled. There was something wrong again. Lucas nodded at me and I attempted to fire again. The noise sounded but no casualties and then I understood. They were blanks.

I stopped and stared at Elyse, mouthing a pitiful apology at her but I doubted that she even recognised me really. That was why I had to shoot her.

Lucas ran over to me and enveloped me in a bear hug. I felt limp in his arms and couldn't find the strength nor the will to hug back. In his eyes, I had chosen the government, willing to sacrifice my friend for the 'greater good' but that wasn't true at all. Lucas couldn't understand what it was truly like; his emotional intelligence had been stunted long ago. Death was not the worst fate. Elyse's agony would never resolve itself; she had lost too much in too little time and would never be the same again. I tried to end it for her, the kinder thing to do. But the gun fired blanks... and she would continue to suffer.

Lucas ended the hug with a genuine grin on his face displaying his pride. His elation was not false but mine was. Casting my eyes into the future I saw numerous lies and coverups. A place where I could never express myself, wherever I went. And I was supposed to be one of the lucky ones. I was 'cured'.

"Are you ready?" Lucas asked triumphantly.

I glanced at Elyse and shuddered to think of her future. "I guess."

He grabbed my hand and led me out the room, practically skipping. His behaviour had well exceeded professional and it seemed that his emotions were too tangled up with his work too. As the door closed behind us, I glimpsed one final time at Elyse. She hadn't moved, frozen in time. The door shut...

When would I see her again?

Would I ever see her again?

Jolted forward, Lucas tugged me and we went further into the facility. I recognised some places such as where the roof was and the general area of my bedroom but other than that I was lost. It made me wonder how much time Lucas had really spent here to get to know every square inch of these winding corridors and endless doors.

Another thing I noticed as we walked was that the security was gradually lessening: there were less cameras on walls and scientists/guards patrolling. We were about to leave the facility.

"I assume you don't have anything in your pockets?" Lucas said.

"No, they're empty," I replied, curious at his question.

Lucas nodded and pointed forwards. In front of me, was a colossal machine that practically filled up the room. There was one door as an entrance but I couldn't see far enough into it to decipher what it was.

"Well, here goes," I muttered and stepped forward.

Hoisting myself up onto the step, I opened the door and peered inside before fully immersing myself in the darkness. The machine looked a lot bigger on the inside yet I still felt claustrophobic as the door hissed shut behind me. Lucas' face disappeared before the tinted glass and I hesitated slightly before walking forwards a few steps.

Some dimmed, red lights flickered on and I waited for instructions.

"Remove all clothing."

A robotic voice - not unsimilar to that of the VISORs' - instructed me but I ignored it. There could be cameras, it could be a trick. I went back over to the door and attempted to open it but it didn't budge. Sighing, I turned round again.

"Remove all clothing."

This time I obeyed, hoping that no one was watching. I slid my two-piece uniform over my head and held it, standing in my underwear.